Kerry community comes together to battle rural decline with self-started wastewater project

By Alastair Tibbs, The Kerryman

A Kerry community is fighting back on rural decline with a campaign to improve their area’s wastewater facilities.

Knocknagoshel’s residents are chasing the dream of natural treatment system which could solve the housing and pollution problems afflicting the area.

The village has identified wastewater as a barrier to community development, with ‘frequent’ rainwater overflows leading to raw sewage entering the nearby Owveg River, according to community representative Chris Barrett told the Castleisland Municipal District meeting last week.

With a major upgrade of infrastructure a long way off, the community have proposed to build an Integrated Constructed Wetland (ICW) to alleviate strain on the existing facilities.

An ICW is a wastewater treatment system that is designed to look and function as a natural wetland, filtering out bacteria and other impurities in terraced pools of water.

“It's an incredibly innovative and nature-based solution to manage wastewater,” said Mr Barrett.

“The water is filtered through and results in a clean river, a clean community and the potential for further housing development.”

The community has worked over the past two years with an environmental consultant to develop a feasibility study for the ICW which could cater for up to another 400 people in the area.

Mr Barrett said Uisce Eireann are ‘on board’ with the plans to purchase a site owned by the Irish Forestry Unit Trust on which to construct the facility.

While the community eye different funding streams for the project, they have asked Kerry County Council and councillors to help with advice and support in acquiring the land.

Councillor Jackie Healy-Rae commended Mr Barrett and the community for their work, praising it as one of the most impressive deputations he had heard.

“Ultimately we want parishes like Knocknagoshel to grow…we can’t have situations even from an environmental point of view where we have raw sewage going into the river,” said Cllr Healy-Rae.

“That sort of infrastructure that give us the ability to potentially build houses there ourselves or a private developer, that’s what the community needs to reinvigorate.”

Councillor Charlie Farrelly, who had attended some of the community nights in Knocknagoshel, attested to the local buy-in and said there was ‘enthusiasm’ for the project.

He said councillors had made land available for housing in recent development plans but emphasised that the infrastructure was paramount to encouraging construction.

“In regard to getting help from the councillors, you’re pushing an open door,” he said.

Councillor Fionnán Fitzgerald also welcomed the project proposals, commending them as ‘very practical’ and ‘solution driven’.

He said the scheme’s funder, LAWPRO, the agency responsible for funding community projects focused on improving water quality, had been very supportive of small projects.

“It’s fantastic to see a solution being given by a community…this area hasn’t changed much since I was a nipper,” said Cllr Fitzgerald.

“Here is a win-win situation for everybody…it would give Knocknagoshel a fighting word chance that it really deserves.”

The meeting heard that Uisce Eireann was driving the project ‘with speed’ and that community volunteers would do their best to assist the water utility.